


The Magician

by tinydooms



Series: We Three Together [10]
Category: The Mummy (1999), The Mummy Series
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Home Invasion, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-06-03
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:40:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24530029
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tinydooms/pseuds/tinydooms
Summary: Evie stood in her window and watched Jonathan’s car pull out of the courtyard and into the night. Confound O’Connell! Never in all her life had Evie been forcibly detained by anyone, much less a man who did things to her insides. Much less a man who was, now that she stopped to think about it, right to have her stay here. Evie sighed, scrubbing her face with her hands. They would be back soon with Dr. Chamberlain. They were literally only going there and back. They weren’t going to engage with the Creature. And if O’Connell had bothered to stop and actually say that to her, Evie might not be so sore with him.
Relationships: Evy Carnahan O'Connell/Rick O'Connell
Series: We Three Together [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1714483
Comments: 16
Kudos: 65





	The Magician

**The Magician**

_Fort Brydon, Cairo, October 1922_

Evie stood in her window and watched Jonathan’s car pull out of the courtyard and into the night. Confound O’Connell! Never in all her life had Evie been forcibly detained by anyone, much less a man who did _things_ to her insides. Much less a man who was, now that she stopped to think about it, right to have her stay here. Evie sighed, scrubbing her face with her hands. They would be back soon with Dr. Chamberlain. They were literally only going there and back. They weren’t going to engage with the Creature. And if O’Connell had bothered to stop and actually _say_ that to her, Evie might not be so sore with him. 

She turned away from the window and pushed it closed. If O’Connell had _asked_ her to stay, rather than ordered her, Evie would have told him that she wanted to go with him because he made her feel safe, and she had not felt at all safe since the mummy had lurched up to her in the stale darkness of the Hamunaptra crypt. And it wasn’t just that he was a big, strong man, although heaven knew that Evie was only too well aware of O’Connell’s splendid physique. It was that he seemed genuinely concerned about her. He had defended her against Dr. Bey’s backhanded jibes, had been visibly upset when they said she was Imhotep’s intended sacrifice. Evie paced her bedroom, twisting her hands. O’Connell had almost hugged her on the ride back to the fort. She had seen his hands rise and fall and wished with all her heart that she could crawl into his lap and hide her face in his shoulder and wail like a frightened child. But no. And now he had actually locked her in her room, as though that would protect her. Evie kicked her dresser and felt a bit better. She decided that she would kick O’Connell in the shin when he got back, and serve him right. 

At least he had had the sense to look sheepish when he was getting into the car to drive away. 

A hesitant tap on the door broke into Evie’s thoughts. 

“Miss Carnahan? You alright in there?” Mr. Daniels called. 

“Yes,” Evie said. “I’m fine. Right as rain. Just peachy.”

Mr. Daniels paused for a long moment. “Well, that’s good. Henderson and me are just out here if you need us. Maybe get some rest?”

Evie sighed, reminding herself that she wasn’t the mummy’s only target. “Thank you, Mr. Daniels. I suppose we should all rest up while we can.”

“Well, just shout if you need anything.”

“Oh, very well,” Evie muttered. Clearly he wasn’t going to just let her out. 

Suddenly she felt bone-weary. Maybe it was good sense to lie down for a bit. Had they only returned from their trek that morning? Evie sank down on her bed and pulled her shoes from her feet, letting them clatter to the floor. She was so tired. The room was hot and her cotton shirt felt clammy under the arms and down her back. Last night she had slid from her camel and collapsed into dreamless sleep under a starry sky. At least tonight she had a bed, and clean nightclothes to sleep in, and water in the pitcher to wash her face with. Evie went to her little closet and stripped herself down, sponging away sweat and irritation and rubbing cream into her face. She reached for one of her more luxuriant nightgowns, a lovely long black silk negligée with ivory trim, trying not to feel like she was wearing it now because she might never have the chance again. What would O’Connell think of her in it? Would he find her beautiful or would he recognize her Egyptian roots and turn away? The former, Evie decided. She had seen him looking at her once or twice in a way that made her feel warm and shy. 

Anyway, it didn’t matter. Once this business was over Rick would return to the life he had led before they met. _Does he want a life that leads to the gallows?_ Evie settled onto her bed and tugged a light blanket over herself. Who knew what Rick O’Connell wanted. She had thought, at Hamunaptra, that it was treasure, and then perhaps archaeology. She thought maybe he wanted....hoped he wanted...she slept. 

Nearly three weeks of hard work, physical toil, and stress caught up with Evie, sending her so deeply to sleep that she didn’t hear the conversation in the other room, or the front door closing, or the rush of wind sweeping inside and the strangled shouts that followed it. She dreamed a fragmented kaleidoscope of dreams: opulent golden halls lit with flickering torches, sunlight on the river, sledding with Jonathan in a snowy park back in England. Then Jonathan became Rick O’Connell, holding her tight in his arms as they tobogganed down the hill, flying faster and faster towards a frozen pond and _look out, we’ll drown!_ And then they were falling through the ice, and she couldn’t breathe, there was pressure on her mouth--

Evie’s eyes snapped open. There _was_ a pressure on her mouth, a face pressed to hers, kissing her--the Mummy was on her bed, kissing her, and his face was _melting_ against her lips, his flesh putrefying where it touched her--Evie clamped her lips shut and squealed her dismay, shoving at him. Imhotep sat up and looked at her, seeming almost amused at her shrieks. The bedroom door crashed open. 

“Hey!” O’Connell bellowed. “Get your ugly face off of her!”

The mummy stood up and snarled at him, and Evie took the opportunity to fling herself off of the other side of the bed. 

“Look what I’ve got!”

O’Connell held up-- _Cleo?!_ Imhotep roared as though frightened and the white cat hissed and spat. The mummy bellowed again and turned to sand, whirling away towards the window. Evie yelped, covering her face with her hands to keep the stinging grit from her eyes. The shutter banged into the window and Imhotep was gone. Silence fell. 

Evie raised her head and looked over at O’Connell and Jonathan, breathing a deep sigh of relief. Safe. Both men looked shaken, their faces set. Jonathan was rubbing his heart. 

“You all right?” O’Connell asked. 

“Well, I’m not sure,” Jonathan replied and made a face when O’Connell turned to stare at him. 

Evie gave a kind of breathless laugh and stood. Jonathan _would_ be Jonathan. Suddenly they were too far away; she needed to be holding them--both of them. She stumbled around the bed and caught hold of Rick’s outstretched hand.He pulled her into a brief, firm, hug and kept hold of her hand as she embraced Jonathan. 

“Are you all right?” he asked again. 

“I don’t know,”” Evie said. She couldn’t bring herself to let go of Rick’s hand, which was warm and firm around hers. “ _How_ did he get in?”

“Probably the same way he left. He, uh--” Rick glanced over his shoulder. Evie felt a thrill of horror.

“He _killed them?!_ ” 

“No, just Henderson,” Jonathan said. He, too, glanced over his shoulder, and lowered his voice. “Daniels is taking it badly. He’d gone out for drinks. I’m going to help him with the, ah. Will you stay here with O’Connell?”

Evie nodded. She didn’t want to see what Imhotep had done to Mr. Henderson. If it was anything like what he had done to Mr. Burns...She shuddered, nausea curdling her stomach. Rick put his hand on her shoulder.

“Hey,” he said, his voice gentle. “You want to sit down or something?”

“No,” Evie said, taking a deep breath. “No, if I sit down I’ll burst into tears and I don’t want to do that. Tell me what happened in Boulaq. Did you find Dr. Chamberlain?”

Rick shook his head, his face grim. “The mummy got him first.”

Evie looked down. She had never liked Chamberlain, but this was too much. Rick squeezed her hand, his other hand warm on her shoulder, and it was all that Evie could do not to close the space between them and hide her face in his chest. Now wasn’t the time to go to pieces; if she let go of her control she would never recover. Instead, she rubbed her thumb over the tattoo at the base of Rick’s thumb, and registered angry red welts running down his arm. 

“What happened here?” She pulled his arm up, frowning at the scratches. They were new and deep. 

Rick looked surprised. “I think the cat did that. It panicked when Imhotep turned to sand.”

Evie touched the scratches lightly, wincing. Cleo had raked a foot practically the length of his forearm. 

“This needs iodine. There’s a first aid pack in the bathroom, if you’ll fetch it.”

“It’s just a scratch,” Rick said. “It’s fine.”

Evie shook her head. “It needs to be cleaned. Heaven only knows where that cat’s been. Go on, it’s in the bottom drawer on the left.”

Rick went, giving Evie time to wipe her eyes, and was back in a moment with the iodine bottle and some cotton gauze. He let Evie sit him down in her desk chair and swipe the medicine over his scratches, narrating their misadventure in Boulaq as she did. Her hands had almost stopped shaking by the time he reached the end. 

“So he got the Book of the Dead,” Evie said, setting the iodine bottle aside. “And then he came here straightaway.”

“Yeah.” Rick rubbed the back of his head. “I thought I was protecting you, you know. By keeping you here. It seemed like the safest idea at the time. I could’ve been less caveman about it, I guess.”

Evie fiddled with the cotton gauze. “Well, don’t do it again, you hear? I’m not a soldier you can order around or a china doll that needs protecting.”

“Yeah.” Rick gave her a small smile; it made her insides squirm. “You kind of do need protecting now, though.”

“Yes, well. Generally speaking. When I haven’t got a murderous priest after me.”

Rick opened his mouth and closed it, looking at her, and for a moment Evie thought that he was going to kiss her. Then Jonathan came through the door and the moment passed. 

“We’ve moved the, uh, body down to the morgue. What do we do now?”

Evie looked from Rick to her brother. “He has the Book of the Dead--you said he wants to use it to bring back his lover? I think I may know what we need to do.” 

Author's Note: The Magician card can be quite powerful, though when reversed it can mean ill intent. I hope you like this story! I'd have had it posted sooner, but current events being what they are...If you're out protesting, please be safe, be careful, and stay strong. 


End file.
